A 'de-Lovely' idea: Cole Porter on hold, but Worcester Chorus still eyes fundraiser

Richard Duckett Telegram & Gazette Staff @TGRDuckett

Sunday

May 3, 2020 at 12:01 AMMay 3, 2020 at 2:45 PM

WORCESTER – Cole Porter may be on hold, but the Worcester Chorus will have an online auction for the first time for its biennial fundraiser.

The chorus was to have performed a concert featuring the music of Cole Porter (who graduated from Worcester Academy) for its previously scheduled fundraiser May 8 at the St. Spyridon Greek Orthodox Cultural Center. The event would also have included an auction.

The performance was canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic, but Music Worcester, which oversees the chorus, will hold the auction fundraiser with an array of items donated by supporters online from May 8 to 15, said executive director Adrien C. Finlay.

The Worcester Chorus (which like Music Worcester dates back to 1858) performs at least four major concerts a year. It's annual performance of Handel's "Messiah" is a longstanding Worcester tradition during the holidays.

"The Worcester Chorus Online Auction" will begin with a live stream via Zoom at 7 p.m. May 8 with remarks by Finlay, Music Worcester board president Virginia A. Vaughan, Worcester Chorus artistic director Christopher Shepard, and assistant director Mark Mummert. "There will be a musical component that we are still finalizing, but we are intending on having a small group of the chorus come together virtually and either perform or pre-record some selections," Finlay said.

A silent auction will then stay open online for many auction items for a full week. On May 15 at 7 p.m. Music Worcester will end the silent auction with a final live stream and live auction. The link to gain access to the live streams will be shared across platforms and websites.

A main goal of the fundraiser is to raise money for next season’s planned performance by the Worcester Chorus of Bach's B Minor Mass.

"We are especially excited about our scheduled performance of the B Minor Mass next winter, particularly because will be collaborating with a wonderful professional Baroque orchestra from New York City," said Shepard. "When we last did the B Minor Mass in 2012, we also used period instruments – it really illuminates Bach's ideas when you use instruments so similar to the ones he had in his own orchestra."

The Worcester Chorus also had to cancel its March 27 performance of Brahms' Requiem in Mechanics Hall.

"Although we are all doing our part during the pandemic, I must say that it was a particular blow to have to cancel our scheduled performance of the Brahms Requiem this spring. Like Bach's Mass, this is a work that yields so many wonderful new perspectives," Shepard said.

Still, "The B Minor Mass has always been a real touchstone work for me – I wrote my PhD thesis about its American performance history, and I make it a point to conduct the Mass at least once or twice a decade. The writing is so profound and so dense that you find many, many new things every time you return to it," Shepard said.

Another goal for the fundraiser is to generate some resources for the chorus to perform the Verdi Requiem with the Masterwork Chorus (also directed by Shepard) at a future date at Carnegie Hall in New York.

"Getting the Worcester Chorus to NYC will be a huge undertaking, and resources generated through the fundraiser will make it possible for every single chorus member to perform at Carnegie Hall," Finlay said.

As for how much Music Worcester hopes to raise with the auction, Finlay said "we have tentatively set our goal at $40K, but to be quite candid, we just have no idea what to expect. Though we have been absolutely amazed at the generosity of Music Worcester patrons since the shutdown began, we also must recognize the significant economic difficulties being experienced by so many at this time."

For the auction items, "we have tried to focus offerings on items that make sense," Finlay said. "Wherever there might be a time, we are pushing items into 2021. We’re very fortunate to have the strong support of JetBlue on this event, and we have two pairs of ticket vouchers to auction off that are good into mid-2021 for travel. We have also been fortunate to have several hosts of vacation homes willing to extend the offer of week-end or week-long getaways in next summer as well. Experiences are either being pushed into late 2020 or into 2021. Parties and receptions, including several where winners may dine with Chris Shepard and Mark Mummert, will take place this fall at the earliest."

Special services are also being offered, Finlay said. "We even had one chorus member put up an item where she will do all the holiday gift wrapping this December for the winner. Another is a professional genealogical researcher, and she’s offering up her services for anyone interested in knowing more about their family history. Yet another has offered a couple hours of gardening and yardwork."

Cole Porter isn't being forgotten.

"As there is such a connection between Cole Porter and Worcester, Chris Shepard definitely plans to present the musical program with the chorus in an upcoming season," Finlay said.